After brain tumor diagnosis, 7-year-old and his family put their trust in one of the U.S. News 50 Best Children’s Hospitals for cancer and neurology & neurosurgery

Jacksonville, FL
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June 18, 2019

Life is supposed to be simple when you’re 7 years old. Logan Silva’s life revolved around the soccer field, until he was sidelined by a concussion. Little did he or his parents know, that injury may have indirectly saved his life.

“If that hadn’t happened, we might not have pushed so hard to find out what was wrong. And then the tumor could have grown,” said Daniel Silva, Logan’s father. “Maybe it was a blessing in disguise.”

For two months after his injury, Logan suffered from headaches that seemed to come out of nowhere. Logan’s pediatrician initially believed it was lingering effects of the concussion, but the headaches grew worse and were soon accompanied by nausea and vomiting.

On September 30, 2017, Logan got an MRI at Wolfson Children’s Hospital of Jacksonville.

“After they were done with the scans, the MRI tech came out and said there was a room in the ER that was waiting for us, and that we would meet a doctor there to discuss the results,” Silva said. “So obviously we knew something was going on.”

The MRI revealed medulloblastoma, a fast-growing brain tumor located in the cerebellum, the lower, rear portion of the brain. Additionally, the tumor was blocking the flow of cerebrospinal fluid, leading to a buildup of fluid in the ventricles of the brain known as hydrocephalus, the cause of Logan’s excruciating headaches and nausea.

Nathan Ranalli, MD, a pediatric neurosurgeon with Wolfson Children’s and the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville, performed an endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV) the next day to treat the hydrocephalus. During this procedure, a small hole is made in the frontal portion of the skull through which an endoscope – a small tube-like surgical camera – is passed through the brain and into the ventricular system. Dr. Ranalli then made a small opening to create a new pathway through which Logan’s cerebrospinal fluid could flow around his tumor.

Two days later, Dr. Ranalli performed surgery to remove the tumor. The Pathology Lab confirmed it was medulloblastoma.

Logan recovered first in the Wolfson Children’s Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) before being transferred to the oncology floor. A condition known as posterior fossa syndrome, which sometimes occurs in children who undergo surgery in that portion of the brain, left him unable to walk or talk.

“Logan’s great courage and determination gave him the strength to get through this,” Silva said.

Following intense inpatient rehabilitation, 30 proton treatments at UF Health Proton Therapy Institute, and six rounds of chemotherapy, Logan is still pushing forward.

Now 9 years old, Logan just finished third grade. His brain scans have been clear since August 2018. While he still has difficulty with coordination, along with slow speech and cognitive processing, he continues to work toward one goal: a return to the soccer field.

When the Silvas turned to Wolfson Children’s Hospital in their toughest hour, they didn’t know it consistently ranks among U.S. News & World Report’s 50 Best Children’s Hospitals in the nation for Pediatric Cancer and Neurology & Neurosurgery. But that’s exactly what they wanted for Logan.

“I don’t believe that we would have gotten better treatment anywhere else in the country,” Silva said. “I can tell you that Wolfson Children’s Hospital focuses on a culture of care for patients and their parents. And it comes through loud and clear.”

Wolfson Children’s ranks again among U.S. News’ Top 50 Best Children’s HospitalsWhat does that mean to patients and parents?

Michael D. Aubin, FACHE, president of Wolfson Children’s Hospital, said, “This national recognition is an honor and a testament to the hard work our medical staff and clinical team put in every day. But this really is about the children, and reassurance to parents that their children are getting outstanding medical and surgical care when they come to Wolfson Children’s.”

Mark Hudak, MD, chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville, agreed. “Our team really values collaborating with the great staff at Wolfson Children’s and with our colleagues at Nemours to bring the very best medical care and outcomes to the children in the greater Jacksonville community and beyond,” he said. “The U.S. News ranking validates the excellence that partners who work together for the benefit of children and families can achieve.”

Gary Josephson, MD, chief medical officer of Nemours Children’s Specialty Care, Jacksonville, said, “We value the partnership with Wolfson Children’s Hospital and are proud to support a world-class health experience for families in North Florida and beyond. These rankings reflect our shared culture of providing innovative first class, patient-centered services.”

U.S. News introduced the Best Children’s Hospitals rankings in 2007 to help families of children with rare or life-threatening illnesses find the best medical care available. The rankings are the most comprehensive source of quality-related information on U.S. pediatric hospitals.

“The Best Children's Hospitals rankings were designed to help provide families seeking the best medical care for their sick child with access to the most comprehensive data available,” said Ben Harder, managing editor and chief of health analysis at U.S. News. “The rankings, coupled with guidance from pediatricians, help families make better-informed decisions about where to find high-quality, compassionate care for their children when they need it most.”

The U.S. News Best Children’s Hospitals rankings rely on clinical data and on an annual survey of pediatric specialists. The rankings methodology factors in patient outcomes, such as mortality and infection rates, as well as available clinical resources and compliance with best practices.

Parents and caregivers have to decide for themselves whether they want to put more or less weight on particular factors, said U.S. News on its website. Ultimately, these rankings allow parents to choose their child’s health care provider based on data about a hospital’s quality of care.